


don't dream, it's over.

by cutterjohns



Category: A Nightmare on Elm Street (Movies 1984-1994), A Nightmare on Elm Street - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Drabble Sequence, Dysfunctional Family, Family Drama, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2020-02-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:01:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22654405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cutterjohns/pseuds/cutterjohns
Summary: Freddy checks in on his daughter. It goes about as well as one might expect.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 27





	don't dream, it's over.

**Author's Note:**

> Woof, it's been a hot minute (see: several fucking _years_ ) since I've delved into fanfic territory. My love of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise and its characters - particularly Freddy and Maggie - has recently been rekindled, and I've been itching to do something with them. Lo and behold, this strange little piece was born. This will hopefully be the first in a series of stories in which I put my own spin on these guys, their history and their relationship, and it's definitely gonna be a bit different than what most NoES are used to. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy it!

_“Have you ever thought about using your powers for good?”_

Freddy chokes on his own cigarette smoke, turning his head as he starts to cough. Maggie doesn’t even flinch. Just looks expectantly at him, arms crossed over her chest. The longer she stares, the more it becomes apparent she’s not budging until she gets an answer. Stubborn kid. Too much like him, even now.

“What?” he croaks, disbelief colouring his tone. His eyes are watering. The heat of the boiler room does little to help. “You can’t be fuckin’ serious.”

 _“I am serious,”_ Maggie signs. Her gaze is stony. _“There are millions of people in the world. There must be some dream you entered where you thought, ‘Maybe this one doesn’t deserve it. Maybe I can actually do something beneficial here for once rather than ruining this person’s entire life.’”_

Having finally caught his breath, Freddy snorts derisively, taking another drag. Holds it in his blackened lungs for a moment, then exhales. A little bit of secondhand smoke isn’t gonna kill her, he thinks. All things considered, she should consider herself damn lucky this is the worst thing he’s exposing her to. “Who the fuck do you take me for? Mother fucking Teresa?” Freddy rolls his eyes. “If I didn’t wanna turn ’em into human soufflés, I wouldn’t be in their dream in the first place. That’s kinda the _point_ of all this, you know.” He gestures around them for emphasis: his self-made palace of iron and stone. “To _scare_ ’em. To take their _souls._ If I wanted to coddle some pimple-faced adolescent’s blue balls, I’d get into online gaming.”

That manages to get a out of a smirk Maggie, and something close to a laugh. It’s fleeting, though. Usually is, with her. Big brown eyes shift from the stripes on his sweater to one of the huge, steaming pipes, a crease forming along her brow. 

_“Don’t you get tired of it?”_

“Tired of what,” Freddy drones, playing dumb.

 _“What you do.”_ Maggie lowers her head. Tugs her oversized cardigan closer to her body, as if she’s cold. Freddy doesn’t like it when she behaves that way around him — like she’s afraid of him. How ironic, he muses, that the one person in the world who need not feel that way does. _“Killing. Torturing people to death. Over and over again.”_ For just an instant, her gaze finds his. She seems to be looking for something, but whatever that could be is lost on him. 

_“Don’t you get sick of that?”_

She doesn’t understand, Freddy thinks bitterly. She was there for the start of all this, when she was small, but she doesn’t remember. Things would be different if she could remember. ( _He_ could make her remember. He could, but he doesn’t. ) 

“Nope,” Freddy answers curtly. Finishes his cig, then flicks the ashes over the railing. “If anything, I get a little _antsy_ if I go to long without ripping someone apart. Keeps me sharp, so to speak.” He waggles his eyebrows at her mischievously, but Maggie’s already turned her back on him. Freddy’s face falls. 

“Hey, you’re the one who asked the question, sweetheart.”

No answer. Freddy grinds his teeth. Clenches and unclenches his gloved hand, listening to the click of his blades. It hurts when she’s mad at him. He doesn’t know how to respond to hurt without causing more hurt.

“If you’re not ready for the truth about things, Kathryn, then maybe you shouldn’t stick your nose where it doesn’t — ”

“Mag-gie.”

Her voice — her verbal voice, not the one she uses with her hands — is cold and flat, enunciates the word slowly. Freddy falls silent.

“My name. Is Maggie. It’s been Maggie since I was six years old.”

For once, he doesn’t have any quips to offer.

“I’d like to go now, Freddy,” Maggie says, and by the time she's gone, he feels cold too.

**Author's Note:**

> As you can see, my take on Maggie - and on Freddy himself, to a lesser extent - is pretty damn canon divergent. I've developed a lot for these two and my characterization of them behind-the-scenes, but tried to leave this vague enough for long-time NoES fans to follow along. Nevertheless, for those of you who have any questions, just drop me a comment and I'll explain as best as I can! Hope to see you guys again soon. ♡


End file.
